There is a need for a replacement spare or back-up battery to be carried along with a pager or beeper. Failure of the primary battery in a beeper or pager can result in the unit not operating. Since beepers or pagers are often used by emergency personnel, such as medical doctors, hospital personnel, volunteer firemen, and policemen, the failure of a pager to operate may result in great harm or danger. Even among non-emergency-personnel users of pagers, such as outside salesmen and repair personnel, the failure of a pager due to a depleted battery can be costly in lost orders, customer ill will, and inefficient use of their time.
There have been a number of spare battery holders suggested in the past. U.S. Pat. No. 4,702,975 to Roy Fields suggests a spring clip-on spare battery holder for a pager. This device is relatively complex involving several parts and holds spare batteries in an exposed position, where they can be easily knocked free by an accidental striking of an object by a user wearing a pager equipped with the unit on his or her belt. U.S. Pat. No. 4,951,817 suggests a cover with a spare battery holder consisting of an elastic loop pouch at the front lower edge of the cover. This location makes the combined unit thicker than may be convenient for shirt pocket use and also allows for accidental loss of the spare battery when belt worn and, if used in a shirt pocket with the battery on the inside, would be uncomfortable to carry or, if used with the battery projecting outward, would provide an unsightly bulge in the pocket.
Thus, there still exists a need for a simple and easy-to-use spare battery holder that is comfortable to carry with a pager and which prevents or reduces the chance that the spare battery will be accidentally knocked free and lost.